Where Is Your Song
Category: Worship & Praise
Key Passage: Psalm 137
Speaker: Anthony Aaron
Date: May 8, 2024
Hebrews chapter 10, verse number 25. We will look at that together. Hebrews 10:25.
Hebrews chapter 10, verse number 25. I’ll give you a second to get there.
Hebrews 10:25: “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching.”
Make sure that you study that, go over that a couple times. It’s on the calendar. So when you look at the day and you’ve got those 115 things that you have to do for the day, just remember, look at the verse first, and then we’ll go from there.
If you have your Bible, just go ahead and turn to Psalm Chapter 137. Psalms 137. We are going to look at a couple verses here, and we’ll get into the message tonight. If you want to stand for the reading of the scripture, we’ll get into this. The title of the message tonight is, “Where Is Your Song?”
We will look at Psalm 137, and we are going to start in verse number one when we are there together.
Psalm 137: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down; yea, we wept when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For they that carried us away captive required of us a song, and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion.’”
This is a very key verse, verse number four: “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?” We will read that verse one more time: “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”
And we will pray before we get started tonight. Lord, I thank you so much just for your word. Thank you, Lord, that we can study your word. Lord, we just kind of take a look into this story here and other passages in the Bible about singing. I just ask you just please be with us. Lord, would you guide me as I preach? Help me, Lord, just to say what you want said, not what you don’t want said. So help me with the time. And I just ask you bless the service tonight in your name. Amen. Thank you so much. You may be seated.
We are thrown into this story. If you know a little bit about Israel, Israel was known for their songs. The book of Psalms was kind of their songbook. The children of Israel were known for their singing. The first thing that they did as a people, once they crossed over the Red Sea, they sang. In Exodus 15, verses 1 through 21, it gives us the story. They sang unto the Lord about the victory that he gave them, about Pharaoh’s men being drowned.
So much when the children of Israel were taken into Babylon for the captivity, the people of Babylon said, “Hey, why don’t you sing us a song?” To the children of Israel that were taken, it was brutal, as you read in Jeremiah and Lamentations. For these people to take them out of their land and say, “Hey, would you sing us a song?” almost mocking, because they knew that the children of Israel had songs about God’s victory and songs about God’s love to them.
We are just going to look into something today: Where is your song?
I was working at Burger King back when I was 18. I did a lot of trash taking out. I would sing hymns out loud. I was kind of the only one that was a Christian there at Burger King. One day I came in and I did my job and I didn’t sing. I was getting all the half-eaten burgers out of the parking lot. One of the ladies that was there, she didn’t go to church, and she said, “Anthony, where is your song today?” That stuck with me because I always want to have a song. I’m a child of God; I should always have a song in my heart.
I won’t be long, but where is your song tonight? We are just going to look at a couple of things on where our song is.
First thing is, why should we sing?
When I was in the teen department, I tried to get into any singing group I could. I wanted to sing because I wanted to impress the teenage girls. But that’s not the real reason. We are going to look at what the Bible says on why we should sing.
The first thing that I have is to praise God. Look at Judges chapter 5, verse number 3. The Bible says this: “Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the Lord; I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.” Our song, the song that we as Christians should have, should be a song of praise to God. We should not sing for ourselves; we do not sing to make a show out of things. We should sing to praise God.
Exodus chapter 15, verse number one, says, “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.” We sing about what God has done for us. God’s protection is so imminent in our lives.
God’s blessing: Psalm 13:6 says, “I will sing unto the Lord because he hath dealt bountifully with me.” We are supposed to be singing praises to God because God has blessed us beyond what we could ever deserve. Grace is getting something that you don’t deserve.
God’s power: Psalm 21:13 says, “Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.” We are supposed to praise God for His power.
We praise God’s righteousness. Psalm 51:14 says, “Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.” We are supposed to praise God for His righteousness. A lot of the reasons we don’t have a lot to say to God is because we don’t really know who he is.
God’s mercy: Psalm 39:16 says, “But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defense and refuge in the day of trouble.” Lord, thank you so much for your mercy.
God’s victory: Psalm 98:1 says, “O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvelous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.” We are supposed to sing unto the Lord for who He is. We are supposed to praise God. When we sing to God, are we giving God praise?
Why should we sing? The second thing is to minister in God’s house. First Chronicles chapter 6, verse number 32: “And they ministered before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of the congregation with singing, until Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.” The reason why we have congregational singing, the reason why we have specials, the reason why we have choir, is to minister to people.
The next thing is to prove God to the heathen. First Chronicles 16:23 says, “Sing unto the Lord, all the earth; shew forth from day to day his salvation. Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvelous works among all nations: for great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is also to be feared above all gods.” When we go out, they should know that God saves by the way that we sing.
The next thing: to get our heart right with God. Look at 2 Chronicles 29:27. When the burnt offering began, “the song of the Lord began also with the trumpets and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpets sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.”
He commands them to sing again in verse number 30. Look at verse number 36. Hezekiah rejoiced, “and all the people, that God had prepared the people: for the thing was done suddenly.” The singing is supposed to prepare your heart for what the message is to come.
The next thing, why do we sing? To thank God. Psalm 147:7 says, “Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God.”
To teach others: Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Our songs are supposed to teach us.
And here is the last thing: because we are commanded. Psalm 68:32 says, “Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord.” Psalm 96:1 and 2 says, “O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth. Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.”
How should we sing? With understanding. Psalm 47:7 says, “For God is the king of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding.” There is no verse in the Bible that says you are supposed to sing well. God wants us to sing. We are supposed to sing with understanding—know who we are singing about.
With joy of heart. Isaiah 65:14 says, “Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and ye shall howl for vexation of spirit.” When we have a joy in our heart, it cannot help but overflow.
With the Spirit. First Corinthians 14:15 says, “What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with understanding also.” Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you as you sing.
With grace in your heart. Colossians 3:16 says, “Singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Our singing should help others.
What keeps us from singing? What steals our song? We know we are supposed to sing. There are two things that I found biblically that steal our song. Psalm chapter 137: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down; yea, we wept when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof, for there they that carried us away captive required of us a song.”
There are some circumstances that are coming to your life that are going to steal your song. There are going to be financial issues, a child that rebels, a death in the family, a trial in your life that is going to steal your song. Don’t let that happen. Don’t let a circumstance steal your song. Christians should be the happiest people on the planet because we know where we are going when we die.
Don’t let a weak walk with God steal your song. God wants you to have a song.
But heart issues. Second Samuel 6:15 and 16 describes David dancing before the Lord when the Ark came into the city. Michael looked through a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord. There are some heart issues going on in our heart that steal our song. Unconfessed sin, hatred toward another, unforgiveness—some things in our heart are keeping us from our song.
If we don’t sing, God is still going to get His song, because the Bible talks about objects singing; the mountains, the rocks, the hills are going to cry out. But God wants to use us.
Zephaniah chapter 3, verse 17 says, “The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, and he will joy over thee with singing.” God sings! Jesus also sings. Hebrews chapter 2, verse 12 says, “Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.”
Decide that you are not going to let anything steal your song, no matter the circumstance. In Psalm 138:1, David says, “I will praise thee with my whole heart; before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.”
Paul and Silas were in prison at midnight; they started praising God and singing. There is not a circumstance too great for us to get our songs stolen from us. Just decide that you are not going to let that happen.
Psalm 104:33 says, “I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live.” David made a commitment. May that be our decision tonight, that we will sing. I want to be known as the Christians that are happy, that have a song in their heart. Don’t let the devil steal your song. Don’t let unconfessed sin steal your song. Don’t let that happen.
Original File: Where Is Your Song - Brother Anthony Aaron 5-8-19 PM